If you have decided you would like a beautiful hardwood floor, you may find that you are put off by the cost, not so much by the cost of the wood itself but by the cost of installation on top of the price of the wood. Without the installation costs, the flooring seems much less expensive! But don’t rush into to thinking about doing this yourself, as not everyone is capable of wood floor installation. It is really quite a specialized job, best left to the professionals, unless you are sure you are capable.
If you are experienced working with your hands around the house, you may be able to tackle this task yourself, but it does depend on your level of skill with wood. If you are capable of no more than putting a flat pack table together, then you probably do not have enough experience, but if you have built a kitchen or a tree house, then you will probably do fine with the right knowledge and tools.
To get the required knowledge you need a combination of two things. First of all, you will need the detailed instructions, which apply to the particular brand of wooden planks you are installing. You will find these on the packaging. Then, you will need to know how to do each task which is required for installation such as how to measure and cut the wood, how to fit the planks, how to lay them out and how to cut around obstructions such as pipes. For these basic tasks you will need a good reference book on working with wood or a woodwork training DVD.
The same applies if you are thinking of installing laminate flooring yourself, although a laminate floor is slightly easier as the planks are thinner and therefore easier to cut and the best laminate simply clicks together, so you generally have less to do.
